It’s not that I believe that conservative friends and family here are cruel and heartless individuals when that it comes to addressing the needs of the impoverished; that they simply hand them a “boot strap” and tell them to “get with it”. No, just like me they do believe and do, as commanded by our Lord, feed the hungry, cloth the naked, shelter the homeless, comfort the sorrowing, visit the imprisoned and lonely and welcome the stranger, etc . . . In fact many conservatives to do this much, much better than I ever will. Rather the difference I think comes out of Dorothy Day’s witness, paraphrased here: It is fine and well to directly assist the poor, but we must also ask why the poor are poor. Is our charity really helping or is it helping to keep unjust structures in place? And the answer to that is where the conflict really comes from. It’s where I take issue with conservative Catholics - particularly those who ID themselves, proudly, as pro-life. Because the answer I give to why the poor are poor is light-years away from where conservatives are on it and where my conservative friends take issue with me. I think they can be too hard and unfeeling with the long term solutions - not tough love - just being tough; while they may see my position as soft and milchtoastish - that offers no real solutions to the problems. Both sides I am sure believe, with the long term, the other side is not really addressing the issues. One sees the other side as being to “other worldly”; while the other as sees the other as too “worldly”. One focuses on the spiritual solutions; while the other focuses on the nitty-gritty “earthly” solutions. One says “We’ll pray about it” and other says - “Lets not just pray, but also do.” And our FB posts and responses and links most definitely reflect it. I know in a local natural disaster everybody here would be pitching in to help. Indeed, I am certain I would find first responders on both sides of the aisle. And everyone would be mixed in together and helping each other to alleviate immediate suffering from the same. But it’s the long-term where we differ - most intensely. The conservatives, it seems to me, prefer the individual approach while I favor a communal one. Liberals will say “It takes a whole village to raise child.” Conservatives will respond: “No! It takes two parents - a mother and father - to raise a child.” But I say “It takes both parents (a mother and a father) AND the whole village to raise a child”. It is at the same time an individualistic and communal effort. And so the same with everything else. The problem then becomes - can we still talk to each other? Can we sit at the supper table together and enjoy each other’s company during a meal or will there be “unsaids” hovering the air? It’s hard in our times which are so divisive with worlds colliding, isn’t it?
Posted on: Tue, 16 Sep 2014 14:11:47 +0000
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